Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory
About this property
Los Alamos National Laboratory (often shortened as Los Alamos and LANL) is one of the sixteen research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy (DOE), located a short distance northwest of Santa Fe, New Mexico, in the American southwest. Best known for its central role in helping develop the first atomic bomb, LANL is one of the world's largest and most advanced scientific institutions. Los Alamos was established in 1943 as Project Y, a top-secret site for designing and assembling nuclear weapons under the Manhattan Project during World War II. This included both nuclear weapons used in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, as well as Trinity, the first nuclear test, a month prior. Chosen for its remote yet relatively accessible location, it served as the main hub for conducting and coordinating nuclear research, bringing together some of the world's most famous scientists, among them numerous Nobel Prize winners. The town of Los Alamos, directly north of the lab, grew extensively through this period. After the war ended in 1945, Project Y's existence was made public, and it became known universally as Los Alamos. In 1952, the Atomic Energy Commission formed a second design lab under the direction of the University of California, Berkeley, which became Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL); the two labs competed on a wide variety of bomb designs. As the Cold War and its nuclear arms race began, Los Alamos remained central to the US effort. Under the "Super" program, Los Alamos physicists including Edward Teller and Stanisław Ulam developed the world's first thermonuclear weapons, Greenhouse George and Ivy Mike.Los Alamos subsequently produced the neutron bomb. The lab was involved in the origins of supercomputers, to further warhead development. Los Alamos also pioneered more fundamental nuclear research, including particle accelerators and nuclear fusion power experiments. With the end of the Cold War and US nuclear testing, Los Alamos took on a central role in the US warhead stockpile stewardship program, via its Dual-Axis Radiographic Hydrodynamic Test Facility and Neutron Science Center. Los Alamos also expanded civilian work, and today conducts multidisciplinary research in fields such as national security, space exploration, nuclear fusion, renewable energy, medicine, nanotechnology, and supercomputing. While owned by the federal government, LANL is privately managed and operated by Triad National Security, LLC.
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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory
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Questions about this property
When was Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory listed on the National Register?
Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 14, 1966.
What type of historic resource is Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory?
Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.
Is Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory a National Historic Landmark?
Yes. Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.
What is the period of significance for Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory?
The period of significance for Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory?
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